The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1887-01-07


When our heavy brick or stone piles
are built in Florida, the workmen are di-
rected to lay the foundations deep-to 60
to hard-pan. 1t is on just such solid
rock of good work and sound principle
that we must rest the superstructure of
our business future. After the disaster
of last winter we announced in the
strongest language, sour boom is dead"
Experience since has proved our view
correct. While Florida was "new" and
fashionable the world and his wife
came to our doors and spent his money;
he has "done" Florida now, and We must
not expect 40 much of him hereafter.
While land was cheap and vacant lots
everywhere, the Spectator came to us
and left his money; there is little chance
for him and his tribe now, and we will
not see him so numerous" again. Every
man who had a little capital thought he
could qua druple it in one season, and he
came down only to find that knowledge
Of business is necessary even to him who
would feed guests on canned stuff; he
has gone the way of all flesh and we
mourn him not. Values were inflated
till the balloon was ready to burst in
places and "a boom" was labeled pros
perity. Only a pin was needed to prick
collapsed. Towns were built on paper
everywhere, but paper towns" must be
taken in out of the cold. and they could
not stand the war of the elements. BY
clearing the deck Of such loads as these,
we will make ourselves ready for action,
and the good ship will yet pass on her
voyage with proud flag flying, carrying
a happy crew to the distant haven of
their rest.
But let not our people be troubled by
the clearances necessary to further prog
ress let them not think that the shak-
ing necessarily given them, as we shift
their home from the sand to the founda-
tons resting on ''hard-pan," is an earth
quake dangerous to life and prosperity. 1t
is a preliminary work to which We must
submit. No community can prosper
long by relying on 'visitors" for part of
our crop. The tourists have done much
for us, but more by advertising our adj
vantages than by leaving their business
interests with us. One solitary settler
who brings us himself and his future, is
worth more than a hundred tourists,
whose places soon know them not. We
must rely on ourselves il we would
prosper. and our own strong hand and
ready brain are the foundations upon
which we must rear the only future of
which we may he justly proud.
We are told that California has cap
tured our BOOM" Let her have it. Let
it drive her people wild as it did ours,
and then let her pray that her awaken
ing from a pleasant dream may not be
more painful than was ours. The
tide of travel has done its work. Flor
ida Is thoroughly known, and her cli-
mate and productions are spoken of in
every land. That is the most the idIers
can do for us. If the bids of the rail
roads or the attractive pictures of the
tourist agencies flood us with visitors
again, we shall treat them kindly, but
will not believe again that each has a
gold mine i'm his vest pocket. The only
salvation worth having is the one we
shall work out for ourselves: the only
prosperity that can come to us will be
one built by ourselves, whose founda-
tons rest on our own energy and work
the only "hard-pan" on which true
greatness can be trusted to abide.